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“I don’t understand.” To her credit, Bella truly did look like she didn’t understand. Her position as a citizen of the Moon in a real family, with real wealth and power, meant she probably had no point of reference for what Trish’s life had been like. Bella had been completely protected, inured even, from what the Moon was like for anyone who wasn’t part of their elite community. Still, this time Trish did sigh, out loud.
“When was the last time an orphan was taken by the Wolf?” Maybe some history would help Bella understand, since she obviously didn’t get it.
“Umm…” Bella made a face. “Sorry, I’ve never been a Wolf follower.” The revelation made her a better person in Trish’s opinion. The people on the Moon who were obsessed with the Wolf and his victims were just as bad as the people living in his commune. Maybe worse, in some ways.
“Five years ago. He was kept for one month,” Trish told her. She was about to go on when recognition lit in Bella’s eyes.
“Oh! He was taken with that other guy, Bryce something. I don’t think I realized he was an orphan.”
“Why would you?” Trish’s lips curved in a smile, acknowledging the sad reality of their world. “I only knew because he was from the same orphanage as me. The newsstations aren’t as interested in people like me as they are in people like you and Alex.”
“But that’s wrong!”
Oh, good grief.
Not that Trish disagreed with her, but really… Society had been like this Trish’s entire life, and she was only a few years younger than Bella, if that. She appreciated Bella realizing it was wrong once it was shoved in her face, but it had been wrong for years, and Bella was one of the many who hadn’t bothered to notice because it didn’t affect her.
Trish understood: it was just how life was. Railing about the unfairness of it had never gotten her anything.
“You have families. People they can interview. Important people. Connections. I don’t have any of that,” Trish explained.
Bella looked like she was about to cry, like she couldn’t believe life was this unfair, and Trish couldn’t help but stare in disbelief. She knew she was naive and weak in her own way, but how naive was Bella?
Trish felt like she should say something to make Bella feel better. She groped about for something that would at least sound plausible. “I’m sure if you and Alex hadn’t been taken at the same time, I would have been bigger news.”
That might be true. If there was nothing else of interest going on for the Moon. Someone like Trish might be mentioned if they were really desperate for content.
Bella still looked sad and even a little angry, but she changed the subject. “Have you been around the Compound? Seen anything that might help us escape?”
Trish shook her head. “I haven’t even been able to figure out which doors lead to the outside. Anytime Jordan’s going out, he locks me in the room.”
Not that she’d been awake most of those times, anyway.
“Do you have computer access or anything?”
Trish shook her head. She had tried, one of the few times he hadn’t been around, and she’d been awake. “Not really… he leaves me there, and I can access games or books or things to entertain me, but it’s not connected to anything. I can’t get to anything that’s not saved to the computer itself.”
The frustration on Bella’s face was somewhat echoed in Trish’s heart, but she also felt like she might be more resigned to her fate than Bella was.
Then again, Trish had had more of a chance to see the Compound—see the people there—than Bella and Alex had. It was huge, bigger than she’d realized at first, and incredibly well guarded. The majority of the people there were trained soldiers. They were in every hall, all the time, living out their lives. So far, she couldn’t imagine an escape scenario that didn’t end in tears; she hadn’t even seen the opportunity for hope.
Bella’s eyes flicked in Jordan’s direction, and Trish tensed. Heavy footsteps heralded his arrival, and Bella looked like she wanted to move away, but didn’t. Trish appreciated the gesture, although she hoped it didn’t get them into more trouble.
“Time to go back in.” Jordan sounded almost bored.
Trish relaxed slightly and then tensed again.
What if he was mad and was just keeping it private, rather than scolding her public?
He didn’t seem mad, but Jordan did pull Trish aside before they went into the main room. When he started undoing the buttons on the top of her pink dress, she protested.
“I thought you said no more public stuff!” The feeling of betrayal was stupid because in order to be betrayed, she wouldhave needed to trust him, and trusting him would also have been stupid.
“This isn’t public; you’re not on stage.” Jordan pulled her body against him, and, for a second, she thought he would hug her but then realized the position just allowed him to trap her arms between their bodies, while his long reach gave him perfect access to her ass.
Smack!
Smack!
